SIAT 2009 was inaugurated on 21st January 2009 by Shri Sontosh Mohan Dev, Hon’ble Union Minister for Heavy Industries and Public Enterprises, Govt. of India, in the august presence of Rt. Hon. Lord Peter Mandelson, Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform - Govt. of UK. Other dignitaries present during inaugural function were Dr. Surajit Mitra, Additional Secretary, Dept. of Heavy Industry, Ministry of Heavy Industries & Public Enterprises, Govt. of India, Dr. David L Schutt, Executive Vice President, SAE International–USA ,Dr. Pawan Goenka, President ARAI, M.S.Kumar, President SAE India, Shri Anant Talaulicar, Vice President – ARAI and Shri Shrikant. R. Marathe, Director – ARAI.

During the 27 technical sessions, held concurrently in 4 halls, there were 25 keynote papers and 90 technical papers presented in SIAT 2009.  The deliberations were focused on the key areas such as, Vehicle Engineering, Automotive Safety, Alternate Fuels, Emissions, NVH (Noise Vibrations and Harshness), Power Plants, Materials and CAE (Computer Aided Engineering). SIAT 2009 was attended by about 900 delegates from all across the globe.

The grand exposition SIAT EXPO 2009 was open to automotive personnel and interested public and provided a great opportunity to share and disseminate information and conduct business. About 102 exhibitors, occupying 133 stalls from all across the globe participated in the SIAT Expo. About  6000 visitors visited SIAT EXPO 2009.

For the first time the Technology Theatres has been conducted during SIAT 2009 by the technology and service providers namely, M/s. AVL India Pvt.Ltd, M/s  MTS Systems Corporation, M/s.  Automotive Test Systems, M/s. LMS India  , M/s. Ricardo India Pvt.Ltd. and Automotive Research Association of India (ARAI). There was a very good response to these new initiatives.

Panel Discussion was held on 23rd January on  “Sustainable Eco-mobility: Challenges Ahead”, chaired by Dr. Satyanarayana Dash, Secretary, Government of India, Ministry of Heavy Industries and Public Enterprises, Department of Heavy Industry. The dignitaries participated in the Panel Discussion were Dr. Pawan Goenka, President- ARAI, Shri Ravi Chopra, Chairman and Managing Director, Piaggio Vehicles Pvt. Ltd., Pune, Shri A. Ramasubramanian, CEO Eicher, Shri Dilip Chenoy, Director General, Society of Indian Automobile Manufactures and Shri Shrikant R. Marathe, Director ARAI.

The SIAT 2009 mega event concluded with the Valedictory function chaired by Dr. Satyanarayana Dash, Secretary, Government of India, Ministry of Heavy Industries and Public Enterprises, Department of Heavy Industry,Dr. Paw an Goenka, President-ARAI, Shri Ravi Chopra, Chairman and Managing Director, Piaggio Vehicles Pvt. Ltd. graced this occasion. Shri Shrikant. R. Marathe, Director – ARAI and Shri D. J. Kulkarni, Convener SIAT 2009 & Dy. Director – ARAI were among the other dignitaries present on the Dias.

Following Awards for technical papers and Expo stalls were given during Valedictory Function:

Awards for SIAT EXPO Exhibition Stalls Sponsored by Volvo India Pvt. Ltd.

First Award: “Magna Steyr, Magna Powertrain” (Stall Manager : Mr. Chaitanya Dabhade).

Second Award :“Horiba India Private Limited”

Third Award : “The Automotive Research Association of India, Pune”

Awards for Best Technical Papers - First Award sponsored by Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd, Second & Third Awards sponsored by Volvo India Pvt. Ltd.

First Award: Paper No.: 2009-26-070, “Measurement of Road Profile and Study its Effect on Vehicle Durability and Ride” by Mr. Pawar Prashant R., ARAI, India.

Second Award: Paper No.: 2009-26-003, “New Optimized Bus Structure to Improve the Roll-Over Test (ECE-R66) Using Structural Foam with High Strength Steel” by Mr. Salvador Ruiz, IDIADA Automotive Technology S. A, Spain.

Third Award: Paper No.: 2009-26-063, “Simulation and Testing Methods to Master NVH and Sound Design” by Mr. Gotthard Rainer, AVL List GmbH, Austria.

Award for Best International Paper Sponsored by Automotive Engineer & Trader

Paper No.: 2009-26-057, “The Lattice-Boltzmann-VLES Method for Automotive Fluid Dynamics Simulation, a Review” by A.Keating, Rupesh Kotapati, Satheesh Kandasamy, Bradley Duncan, Richard Shock and Hudong Chen, Exa Corporation, Burlington, USA.

Best Indian Paper on Environmental Pollution

Paper No.: 2009-26-031, “Development of Six Cylinder HCNG Engine Using an Optimized Lean Burn Concept” by Dr. Thipse S.S, ARAI, India.